After a weekend of detours and bus bridges, regular train service at Denver's Union Station is set to return Tuesday morning, as RTD wraps up work on roughly 1,600 feet of overhead electrical wire. The project sidelined E and W light-rail trips into the station and shifted W Line riders onto temporary bus shuttles between Auraria-area stops and Union Station. Riders are still being told to expect some residual delays and to pad their Tuesday commute with extra time.
According to RTD, crews worked from Saturday through Monday to swap out approximately 1,600 linear feet of overhead wire as part of the agency's Building a Better RTD initiative. "We're investing in proactive maintenance like this to strengthen our system," Deputy CEO Angel Peña said in the release. For route and schedule questions, RTD is steering riders to the Next Ride app or Customer Care at 303.299.6000.
What Changed This Weekend
As reported by Denverite, W Line trains gave way to bus shuttles running between Auraria West Station and Union Station, with shuttle stops set up at 10th-Osage, Empower Field at Mile High, Ball Arena-Elitch Gardens, and Gate B21 in Union Station's underground concourse. The temporary setup included a bus-bridge gate on Osage Street to smooth transfers during the outage. Denverite's coverage lays out RTD's schedule for the work and how riders felt the pinch along the downtown corridor.
E Line Detour And Connections
According to RTD, E Line trains were shifted onto the Downtown Loop instead of rolling directly into Union Station. Trains detoured from 10th-Osage to Colfax at Auraria Station, then continued to the 16th and 18th Street stations at Stout and California. Riders could still reach Union Station by using the temporary bus bridge at 10th-Osage or hopping onto the free 16th Street MallRide. RTD urged customers to monitor service alerts and check Next Ride for real-time updates.
How To Plan Your Trip
As Denverite and RTD both pointed out, riders should continue to build in extra time, lean on the Next Ride app for live departure times and service alerts, and look at alternate options like the 16th Street FreeRide. If you are on a tight schedule, plan around shuttle boarding at 10th-Osage or Auraria West rather than counting on a straight shot into Union Station. Full restoration is expected by Tuesday morning, but it is still worth keeping an eye on service alerts for any leftover schedule tweaks.
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